I used to live in a house that had very shallow closets because of that
very reason.  Apparently, houses were taxed for each room in the house
and room was considered any space in which a man could stand and turn
completely around with the closed.  The closets in the house where I
lived were probably 5 feet wide, but they were only eight inches deep.
There was no way I or my husband or anyone other than a small child
could stand sideways inside the closed and close the door.  But again, I
got that information from someone else and I don't know where she got
it.
Hope this helps.
Heidi Carroll



>Subject:      historic house closet taxes
>To:           [log in to unmask]
>
>I need some help tracking down the origin of a historic house docent
myth (or if it isn't a myth I need to know that, too).  I work at The
Moody Mansion in Galveston, TX and we occasionally hear that closets
were not built into old houses because they were taxed.  I sent a survey
to quite a number of museums, but I didn't contact everyone.  I've got
wonderful replies and would like to have more.  Please let me hear any
tales you have to tell.
>


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